


I'm sinking (Can't hide the bubbles)

by ScorpionMauve



Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Anxiety Attacks, Crying, Fear, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Kayak, Nervousness, Nightmares, Screaming, Sunburns, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:47:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25736767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScorpionMauve/pseuds/ScorpionMauve
Summary: Yangyang, Dejun and Yukhei were all excited to go kayaking.Why the hell couldn't Guanheng feel the same for once ?
Relationships: Liu Yang Yang & Wong Kun Hang | Hendery, Wong Kun Hang | Hendery & Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Wong Kun Hang | Hendery & Xiao De Jun | Xiao Jun
Kudos: 39





	I'm sinking (Can't hide the bubbles)

**Author's Note:**

> If this feels oddly specific and personal, don’t read too much into it. Because it is. That, for the most part, is what happened to me.  
> (The part missing being, obviously, the comfort chunk of this mess)  
> With that, enjoy !

Guanheng really had no want for this, but Yangyang and Dejun seemed to look forward to it so much that he didn’t have the heart to say no. Hell, even Yukhei wanted to, despite their shared fear of frogs, which was one of the reasons for his uneasiness about all this. If Yukhei could do this, Guanheng could suck it up and go kayaking on the river in the middle of the mountains. 

He had no doubt it would be beautiful as his friends promised, but his tense state would forbid him from enjoying the landscapes. As he sat in the van taking them to the start of the course, Guanheng looked outside the window, doing his best to keep himself from vibrating due to anxiety. Next to him, his three friends chatted excitedly, their voices barely reaching his brain through the thick fog clogging his ears.

Guanheng jumped with a shriek when Yangyang bumped him with his shoulder, trying to get his attention. The surprised sound brought laughter from the younger man who imitated him mockingly. Guanheng smacked his arm in retaliation, using the motion to cover up the bubble of hurt in his chest.

“What do you even want, brat ?”

Yangyang copied his tone of voice, garnering laughs from the other two sitting in the row in front of them. Guanheng rolled his eyes, mood dropping even further down. Usually, he wouldn’t react like this to this type of teasing, common among them, but he had been on edge for the whole morning.

“Oh come on, it was just a joke.”

Guanheng knew Yangyang was right, but that didn’t make him any more comforted. 

“Anyways, you fine with going with Dejun ? I told Yukhei I’d go with him.”

Guanheng nodded, adding what he hoped was a carefree “Yep”. That earned him one of Yangyang’s bright smiles, which sufficed to push down the pinching sensation in his heart. It had vaguely felt like Yangyang didn’t want to share the boat with him. He probably knew it was not the truth, somewhere deep down, but right now, he was doing it for his friends’ happiness. Therefore, if he was pained a little more on the way, it didn’t matter.

Guanheng blanked out as the woman in charge of the kayak renting gave them final advice and guidance. His eyes had strayed to the riverbed just a couple meters away, which they would be going into in a minute. He observed as the water rippled, chest tightening as he thought as to what it could be that was causing those small waves. 

His worries strayed when the woman handed him a paddle. Dejun stood in front of their kayak, holding his own paddle. He stared down at the glaringly red boat before taking the strap on the front end and pulling it into the water.

“Do you want to go in front ?”

Guanheng thought about how that would open his vision to all possible frogs in the area and shook his head immediately. Yangyang and Yukhei were already spinning around on the water, Dejun looking impatient to join.

“You go in front, I’ll take the back.”

Dejun wasted no time in settling himself there, watching Guanheng expectantly as he drifted away from the shore. Guanheng had to spring up into the water, cringing at the feeling of it soaking up into his shoes. He dropped his ass into the kayak, almost making it overturn, earning a cry from Dejun. 

Guanheng brought his legs into the boat as quick as he could, faking a laugh to make it seem like he had planned all of it to tease his friend. Dejun seemed to not see through his act, making his heart settle down. 

“Alright, let’s go, make us turn to the right.”

Guanheng stared at the paddle in his hands for a moment before finally springing into action when Dejun turned around to stare at him. He put the end of his paddle in the water and pushed it back, making them turn as his friend moved them forward. It went well for a few seconds until they bumped into a rock, driving them off course. 

Guanheng stumbled to readjust their trajectory but went on the wrong side. They ended up going down the rapids back first, bringing shrieks from them and laughs from the other boat that waited for them. As Guanheng turned them back around slowly, Dejun complaining about his lack of speed, Yukhei and Yangyang continued on ahead.

“Come on, how are you so bad at this ?”

Guanheng wanted to retort that it was his first time ever kayaking and that it was pretty confusing, but Dejun started batting at the water himself in an attempt to speed up the process. Guanheng bit his lower lip and kept on with his clumsy motions until they eventually reached the correct angle. Then, they pushed forward to catch up to the other two who were getting further and further away.

However, in the middle of the rapids, there was a shallower area that Guanheng didn’t manage to avoid. The rocks dragged under them, slowing them down to a stop. It was no use paddling since the water there wasn’t deep enough to have an impact on their position. They tried to push themselves off but the ground wasn’t firm enough, only a pile of small rocks that rolled away when trying to use them as support.

“Maybe try stepping out and pulling us off ?”

Guanheng suggested, hesitation clear in the intonation of the sentence. Dejun crossed his arms, turning to face him.

“You do it then, you got us stuck.”

Guanheng felt nervousness rush up his throat like a rocket taking off. His eyes darted to the side, trying to see if there were any amphibians ready to ambush him. As he slid his foot out and pushed himself up, he tried his best to conceal the way his legs were shaking in his shorts. He grabbed onto the handle at the front of the boat and began pulling.

The boat didn’t want to move and he had bad grip on the rocky floor, so it took a longer time than Guanheng was comfortable with. Once it felt like it was unstuck, he flew back inside, rocking the kayak with the force of the movement. They only had to push forward slightly and they took off again. 

They caught up to their friends, who had stopped in the middle of the next flat plane of water. Sideways, Yangyang smacked his paddle in the water, sending water all over Dejun and Guanheng. The latter blinked as water dripped from his bangs, unsure how to react. Yukhei went with the more classic approach of plunging his gigantic hands under the surface and throwing it up right into his friends’ faces. 

At first, Guanheng wanted to reach for his paddle to repay them the favour, but as it kept going without stopping, he brought his hands up to protect his face. His eyes stung, there had to be some stuff stuck in them now. When the impromptu shower finally stopped, the pair took off, leaving Dejun and Guanheng behind again. 

Guanheng began to make them rotate slowly again, trying to aim in the right direction. Unfortunately, they ended up stuck three successive times on three different rocks in the next rapids. Dejun grew progressively more frustrated, to the point that he barked at Guanheng to get out on the third time. They exchanged their positions, Dejun settling in the back.

When they set off again, it was undeniable that they moved more swiftly and that Dejun was more skilled at orienting them than Guanheng had been. Therefore, he dropped the angling part and simply focused on paddling forward when needed. 

As they glided over the water, their friends’ boat out of sight, a small blue dragonfly landed on the tip of Guanheng’s paddle. He observed it curiously, admiring its transparent shimmery wings that occasionally fluttered. A splash of water made it fly away, leaving Guanheng’s mind to focus back on the possible frogs present around the area. Even Dejun groaned at Yukhei’s antics.

“Fuck off, we’re basically a floating pool now !”

His words were absolutely right, considering that the boat was filled with so much water that the top of Guanheng’s thighs barely peeked out. He tried scooping some of it out, but Dejun told him to focus on making them move forward. 

The sun hit hard over his naked shoulders and arms, and though it didn’t feel quite as hot, Guanheng was convinced his face was burning as well. Their sunscreen was stored in the other boat and, even if he asked, they probably wouldn’t have given it to him. From that point on, Guanheng all but disconnected. His body went on auto-pilot, answering to Dejun’s orders and not doing much else apart from wiping his face after his friends splashed it. 

When they eventually reached the end of the course, it felt like Guanheng was being freed. He stepped out first into the mud. His feet almost sank into it, but he managed to rip them away and not leave his shoes behind like Yukhei had. From his feet flowed a river as he walked up the small incline, holding onto the boat while Dejun carried the paddles. 

Guanheng unclipped the strap of his helmet as well as his lifejacket, not needing them now that he was on land. He felt gross, but the relief of the kayaking finally ending overpowered it. His shoulders dropped at the same time as he let go of the boat. His three friends began walking along the burning hot road, making him run to catch up.

“Where are we going ?”

Yangyang threw him a questioning look over his shoulder.

“Back to the kayak hut, where else would we go ?”

Guanheng thought the lady would be coming back to get them. Maybe he should have listened. He nodded, saying it had slipped his mind, and followed along. The sunrays hit his nape painfully now, but it was too late. He knew he was sunburnt and putting sunscreen on now would do nothing. He barely kept himself from releasing a deep sigh.

When they finally reached the hut, the owner asked them if they had had fun. Guanheng looked up and saw the bright smiles and excited spring in his friends’ steps. He couldn’t ruin that, now could he ? Therefore, he shut his mouth, plastering on a dumb smile and nodding.

Climbing behind the driver’s seat in the car they had rented out for their vacation proved to be an arduous task. Before that, Guanheng had to beg Dejun to drive instead of him, using the argument that he had driven on the way there. Really, it was just more for their safety, because he knew there was no way he would be able to focus on the road. He didn’t want to be responsible for getting them in an accident. In exchange, he took up Dejun’s round of loading and unloading the dishwasher.

Guanheng melted into the seat, pulling out his headphones and putting on music loudly to block the sounds of his friends’ conversation. He stared blankly outside the window for the whole ten minutes it took to get back to their rented house. When he stepped out, Yangyang elbowed him in the ribs, asking if he was okay. Guanheng had a choice to make, and the answer was obvious. With a large reassuring smile, he nodded.

“Just tired from dragging Dejun’s ass around, you know how it is.”

That earned him an offended scream and a smack on his painful shoulder, but at least Yangyang had forgotten about him. 

Guanheng lost no time in getting inside the house and locking himself in the bathroom. He stripped, throwing his wet swimming trunks in the sink and staring at himself in the mirror above it. His shoulders, cheeks, nose, as well as lower thighs and calves burnt a bright red. He looked like a cooked shrimp, creepy expressionless eyes included. 

Guanheng slithered into the dingy shower, turning on the water to spray on the wall as he slithered down to the floor. His music blasted in the small room, reverberating around loudly, and yet there was no way he would be able to tell what song was playing. He let the tears he had been holding in flow freely down his face. At least, they would dislodge whatever had gotten stuck there.

Guanheng’s head dropped forward, chin resting against his sternum as his hair spread around his face. It was hard to take deep breaths in that position, or maybe it was just the guilt crushing him. Why couldn’t he have enjoyed it like his friends had ? Oh right, because his arms hurt terribly from all the paddling, because he had been yelled at at least twenty times in the span of two hours, because he had received the equivalent of fifty eight bathtubs of water in his face, because the sun had burnt him like the sausage Yukhei had forgotten to take off the grill the previous day.

Guanheng was exhausted, so much so that if he weren’t naked, he would fall asleep in place. Yes, even in the strange uncomfortable position he had taken in the cramped shower. He didn’t even flinch when he heard pounding on the door.

“Hennie, I need to take a shower too, you’ve been in there for thirty minutes !”

Yukhei shouted through the wood panel, unaware of the wet shivering man on the other side of it. Guanheng yelled back, ruling his voice into a stable pitch.

“Not my fault there’s more sand and seaweed in my crack than in the entire ocean.”

The slightly too personal information had the intended effect : it prompted Yukhei to back off. Guanheng, now broken out of his spiralling train of thoughts, took that chance to actually slather himself in soap and rub off all of the disgusting gunk still clinging to his skin. A rock tumbled from his hair when he shook his head and he didn’t even have the heart to question how it had gotten there.

Guanheng rinsed off his skin, wincing when the hot stream revived the burn in his skin. He dried himself with the gentlest pats of towel he could muster, not wanting to irritate his wounds any further. He covered his skin in aftersun lotion, sighing at the cooling respite. He pulled on the pair of boxers he had brought in the bathroom with him.

Guanheng left the room just like that, uncharacteristically wearing only underwear, before crashing into the door of the bedroom right next to it. He collapsed on the bed he shared with Yukhei, paying no mind to the way the lotion greased up the sheets, and slithered over to his side. His head hit the pillow and, a stray tear slipping out of his eye and over his bright red cheek, sleep pulled him into its embrace.

It was unusual for Guanheng to not clean up after himself the slightest bit. He had left his wet trunks in the sink, had not even rinsed them like he had the habit of doing, had also forgotten his phone by the sink, had not put on the sleep shirt that he wore even in the hottest of summers, had not told Yukhei he was done with shower in the most obnoxious voice he could muster. Hell, he hadn’t even eaten anything before dropping in bed like a dead fly.

A now cleaned up Yukhei stared at Guanheng’s blanket covered back from the threshold, an uneasy feeling in his heart. He had cleaned up after his friend, of course, pulled the sheet over him and plugged his phone to charge it from its 8%, but he couldn’t erase the prodding sensation that something was wrong. 

“What are you staring at Hennie like a creep for ?”

Yangyang always had such a way with words, Yukhei thought as he turned around to look at the man that had taken him by surprise. He wasn’t quite sure how to sum up his worries, instead throwing another look at the sleeping Guanheng over his shoulder.

“He didn’t eat.”

How eloquent, Yukhei. Yangyang’s expression softened considerably as his hand moved up to ruffle Yukhei’s hair.

“He’s just tired, he told me so. We’ll leave him some of Junnie’s pasta for when he wakes up.”

Yukhei nodded quietly. Surely he would have told them if something was wrong, right ? 

“If it’s even edible.”

Dejun, hearing that from where he stood a few meters away, in front of the stove top, sent Yukhei a glare. Yeah, surely, there was nothing to worry about. They ate together, chatting joyfully, not knowing that, on the other side of the living room wall, Guanheng sobbed.

Yukhei eventually came to bed to sleep, easily settling and letting his mind drift away. Next to him, looking unbelievingly smaller, Guanheng was plagued by nightmares. Instead of tossing and turning restlessly, he laid paralyzed by fear, breathing like he had just run a marathon. And maybe he had, in his dream, while being chased down by hauntingly large frogs, with their bulging eyes and slimy skin.

Guanheng’s eyes snapped open and yet he stayed frozen. He stared at the wall ten centimeters away from his nose, arms clenching his chest tightly as he tried to slow his breathing. His nose started to tingle as his eyes watered. Convincing himself he was safe was not an easy feat, and a wave of nausea rose in his throat. 

Guanheng got on his feet as he could in the tight space separating the mattress and the wall. He rounded the bed, not caring about his elbow banging hard into the wall since Yukhei slept like a log. It was a miracle to be able to wake him in the morning. Guanheng left the bedroom in the dark and put on his flip flops. He unlocked the front door and slipped outside, taking a lungful of chilly air.

Guanheng rounded the house to go sit on one of the chairs behind it. He could have gone through the door window that led directly there, but the shutters were creaky and would’ve roused his friends. He dropped his butt on the plastic chair, slightly dampened by the night. He felt the thin layer of liquid seep into his underwear, but he didn’t care considering he was already covered in drying sweat. His head dropped forward, unable as he was to support its weight.

“Fuck, if only I had something to smoke.”

He had taken up smoking in early high school, a bad habit that he managed to quit a couple years later. However, even though he had not touched a cigarette for a long time, the feeling of relief he got from one was still intensely anchored in his mind. It wasn’t rare for him to reach for his nonexistent pack during stressful days.

Guanheng slumped down in his chair. The cold prickled his skin, but at least it had brought him back to his senses. It felt good on his heated flesh.

“Guanheng ?”

At the call of his name by a familiar voice, he flinched so hard he almost fell off his chair. He turned around and saw Dejun standing there. Was the nightmare not over yet ? When his friend took a step forward, hand held out, Guanheng leaned back and away. Hurt flashed in Dejun’s eyes, quickly followed by concern when he finally took in Guanheng’s state. 

Dejun himself had pulled on a zipped sweater over his tank top, contrasting to Guanheng’s almost naked body. He slowly sat down on the chair opposite Guanheng, eyes never leaving him.

“Did you eat ?”

Guanheng wondered if he had woken Dejun up or if he had still been awake. He might have been, after all, usually going to bed later than the rest of them. He had no idea what time it was at all.

“Yeah.”

Dejun crossed his arms as Guanheng shivered. He didn’t like lying, but if it made his friends not worry about him, he’d do it in a heartbeat.

“Liar.”

There was no real heat behind the word yet it still slapped Guanheng in the face. He looked down shamefully, avoiding Dejun’s piercing gaze. He tried to dismiss it by saying that he wasn’t hungry, but he didn’t have to see his friend’s face to know he didn’t believe him.

“What’s wrong, Hennie ?”

Came Dejun’s voice, enquiry soft like sinking into a feather pillow. Hendery shook his head quietly, only answering a few words because he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t dissolve into tears if he said more.

“Had a nightmare.”

Dejun’s eyebrows knit together in a frown, remembering how Guanheng had told him he solely got nightmares after really bad days. He seems unsure of how to respond, before scooting his chair closer, its legs scratching loudly against the floor. He didn’t care about the noise.

“Do you want to talk about it ?”

The caring inflection in Dejun’s voice brought Guanheng close to tears again, chest expanding in jerks as his breathing stuttered. His friend noticed that and reached out his hand, an open invitation for Guanheng to take. He did, and he held it so tightly he feared he was hurting his friend. He clung onto Dejun’s hand like a drowning man to a lifering.

He had tried so hard to hide his fearful and anxious state from his friends, and yet he had still failed. He felt so weak for failing such an easy task. Guanheng didn’t even notice when Dejun moved to kneel on the hard concrete, pulling him into a tight hug. All he knew is that there were suddenly arms holding him tightly in a safe embrace, where he let his tears free. Dejun’s hand caressed the back of his head softly, a grounding touch amongst the screams in his mind.

Dejun didn’t prod further, simply holding Guanheng as he cried. He let him get everything out of his system but at this point, no more water leaked out of his eyes. Dejun gently pulled back, but kept his palm on the other man’s hair reassuringly.

“Let’s get you some water, yeah ? You’re probably really dehydrated.”

Guanheng nodded slowly, the feeling of his dry mouth suddenly very uncomfortable now that it had been brought up. Something soft and warm wrapped around his shoulders, and he looked up to see that Dejun had rid himself of his sweater. Guanheng wanted to thank him but only managed a pathetic croak. He shivered as he was led back inside, and pushed to sit on the couch. 

A glass of water sneaked its way between Guanheng’s fingers and he brought it to his lips instinctively. The feeling of the water coating his mouth and running down his throat felt so good. His shoulders sagged as Dejun sat back next to him, a plate on his thighs.

“If you’re feeling nauseous, pasta should be okay, but I can make you something else.”

Guanheng shook his head quietly. Despite his stomach feeling tight and growling, he didn’t feel hungry.

“Just a bit, please ? You haven’t eaten since lunch and it’s like 2 in the morning.”

Guanheng felt guilty for keeping Dejun up at such a late time, but it seemed like his friend had other concerns in mind.

“Oh god, we have that bike trip tomorrow morning, don’t we ? Ugh, that’s going to be awful… Maybe we can cancel ?”

Guanheng’s breathing came to a stop as he realized he would be responsible for his friends missing something that they had been looking forward to. Dejun picked up on it immediately, hands flying to steady Guanheng’s so the water wouldn’t spill out of his glass.

“Just leave that to me, okay ? Don’t worry about it. You’re more important than biking, Hennie, you know that, right ?”

Dejun’s heart broke when his friend gave no reaction to the question, despite clearly having heard it. What had happened today for him to be this unsure of himself ? Instead, he picked up his pair of chopsticks, twirling some pasta around it and held it up.

“Can you just eat a bit for me, Hennie ?”

Guanheng seemed to hesitate for longer this time, which gave Dejun some hope. Even if he didn’t want to, he had to get something in his system.

“Eat, Guanheng.”

Dejun felt slightly bad for using one of Guanheng’s weaknesses against him, but it was for the best. It was common knowledge among the group of friends that he had a hard time resisting direct orders, a trait ingrained in his mind by his very strict parents. He had since distanced himself from them, but the habit hadn’t faded with time. 

They usually tried their best to avoid using formulations that would make him react, but this time, Dejun had no choice. Guanheng’s eyes glazed over and he opened his mouth without a word of protest. He had been working on not being as easily controlled, but his tiredness combined with the yearning to be taken care of worked together against him. He chewed slowly on the pasta, bland to avoid upsetting his stomach more, and swallowed after a few seconds.

Dejun managed to make him eat two more mouthfuls of noodles before Guanheng closed his mouth obstinately, moving back.

“No more, please, no more.”

Dejun put the plate down on the table, pulling Guanheng close when he saw the tremors agitating his body. His hand took its place back at the back of his friend’s head, gently carding through the short hair there.

“You did good, Hennie, I’m proud of you, okay ? Would you like to sleep now ?”

Guanheng nodded silently from his spot against Dejun’s chest, arms firmly wrapped around him. Dejun maneuvered them so they laid down on the couch which, since it was only a mattress, doubled as a large twin bed. Guanheng didn’t look like he was ready to part, and his nightmares sometimes carried over when he fell back asleep after waking from one.

“Just try to sleep, I’ll take care of everything.”

Guanheng let himself drift away, not caring how Dejun’s ribs dug into his forearm and cut off the feeling in his hand as long as the other still held him.

The light coming from the kitchen window as well as the quiet sound of someone walking around sneakily roused Guanheng. He lifted his head from its spot, blinking owlishly as his free hand tried to smooth out his spiky hair.

“Jun ?”

As his eyes adapted to the light, he noticed the figure grabbing a bowl from the cabinet over the stove.

“No, it’s me. He’s on the phone outside.”

Ah, Yangyang then. He put down his bowl on the table next to the box of cereal they had bought earlier that week and padded over.

“He told me what happened last night.”

Guanheng’s blood froze in his veins and he brought his hands back into the sleeves of Dejun’s sweater he still had on, concealing himself as he could. The corners of Yangyang’s lips drooped down when he noticed the protective motion.

“He didn’t go into details. I just wanted you to know that we’re here if you want to talk about it, alright ?”

Guanheng pursed his lips, shrugging carelessly.

“It’s not important, but thank you.”

Yangyang gently smacked Guanheng’s thigh, not enough to hurt but still sufficient to make him look up.

“It is if you had nightmares about it.”

Guanheng sighed and scooted back so he could rest against the wall, as the couch didn’t have back cushions.

“I just, I had a bad day and I didn’t want to bother you with it.”

Yangyang’s hand moved tentatively to Guanheng’s knee, slowly shaking it.

“What are you saying ? I thought you had had fun.”

Guanheng looked away from the painfully honest look on Yangyang’s face as he shook his head. The hand on his leg twitched.

“What ? Why didn’t you…”

Guanheng laughed nervously, shrugging once again. He stood up, having to steady himself on a chair as dizziness overtook him.

“Didn’t want to be a, shit, I need more iron, to be a bother. Catch up, Yang.”

Yangyang shot up seeing him waver, catching him by the waist instinctively. 

“More like catch on, don’t you collapse on me, you ass.”

Guanheng rolled his eyes, but hooked his arm around Yangyang’s shoulders.

“Let’s get you food and water. I’m hungry too.”

Guanheng waddled around, glued to Yangyang’s side. He playfully slowed him down, trying to trip him, until he had enough and let go of him.

“Thank you, I can actually walk, you know ?”

Yangyang grumbled something under his breath as he grabbed the tray on which he had put all of their stuff. Guanheng moved to open the shutters so they wouldn’t have to go around the house. He then stepped through, eyes immediately finding Dejun with his back turned to them, standing a bit further in the grass. He could vaguely hear him talking, but Yangyang setting up the table covered his words.

“Alright, I want to see you sit and eat, okay ?”

Guanheng blew air out through his nose and sat on the damp chair. It was the same as the one he had taken a seat on during the night but now, with the light of the rising sun and his friend by his side, he thought that it would be okay. He drank a glass of water and ate rice and slices of apple. 

“Damn, the sun got you good, huh ?”

Yangyang noted as there was finally enough light for him to catch the glaring red marks on Guanheng’s legs and face. The latter nodded, slipping off a bit of the sweater to showcase his shoulders.

“That has to sting like a bitch. I’ll get you the lotion, wait a sec.”

Yangyang disappeared inside the house again, shifting stuff around to find the blue bottle. He quickly made his way back, urging Guanheng to remove the sweater so he could liberally slather all of the red spots with the sticky gel. He winced when Yangyang, no matter how gentle he made his hands, trailed over his burnt skin, crouching in front of him.

“Sorry, sorry, but it’ll feel better afterwards.”

Guanheng knew, but it didn’t make it hurt any less. He squeezed his eyes shut, making Yangyang caress his forehead softly.

“All done now, you did good, Hennie.”

Guanheng was thankful for the sunburn covering his cheeks, at least, since they concealed his blush. Soon, Dejun joined them at the table, confirming he had canceled their bike reservation for the morning as he stole Yangyang’s glass of orange juice. He sat across from Guanheng, sipping the juice with a fond look in his eyes. 

An instant later, arms wrapped around Guanheng from behind and a pair of lips pressed up against his temple fleetingly, followed by some longer nuzzling. Yangyang whooped from his left and Dejun giggled as Guanheng hid his face, a smile slowly overtaking it. When Yukhei eventually made his way around, a bright and happy face appearing in Guanheng’s line of sight, he said to himself.

“Yeah, I’ll be okay.”

**Author's Note:**

> Twitter : [@lacyjunnie](https://twitter.com/lacyjunnie)


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